It had been a while since I've read a Paranormal Romance and so I went into search for an author I've never read before on my bookshelf I've dubbed 'The must read shelves'. It has seemed that over the years and since I've gone to RWA for the first time that this bookshelf has grown bigger than my normal bookshelves could handle. That's right I added a bookcase to my collection just to have a to be read shelves that don't mix in with the books I've already read. Don't judge me, you know you've wanted to or have done the same at some point. So I found Carolyn Jewel's book My Wicked Enemy staring at me. Yelling at me to read it.
So, I did. I mean I even had it signed by the author while I was at the conference. Thanks, Carolyn!
What is the book about? Well, let me tell you. (Better yet, let me have the back cover explain it even better)
A Desire that Can't be Controlled . . .
Carson Phillips is a witch on the run. For years, the notorious mage Alvaro Magellan has held her as his psychological prisoner. But once Carson gets a glimpse of the true extent of his evil, she flees MagellanÕs mansion--stealing a stone talisman of unimaginable power on the way. Her only hope for survival is a demon who ignites a voracious hunger in her she can't deny, a longing she can't resist . . .
A Hunger that Can't be Sated . . .
Nikodemus is a warlord with a mission: Kill Magellan and his green-eyed witch at any cost. But when he meets the desperate Carson, the pull of her magic takes his breath away. HeÕs not sure he can trust this tantalizing woman--she is his enemy--and less sure he can keep his hands off her. But Magellan will stop at nothing to reclaim what belongs to him. Can Nikodemus save Carson before his desire for her destroys then both?
The whole concept of demons or fiends along with Mages had caught my attention. I loved the idea of them being in a war while trying to keep it under-wraps from the human world. And it takes place in my city, San Francisco! Okay, it's not my city but I live here so it's close enough.
Chemistry from two people who should be at war, action, sex, love, magic, and blood lust. It's everything I want in a good paranormal romance. But here is the thing that got me, there is so much going on that some of the world and characters are hard to keep track of. Especially when the fiends are able to feel and communicate with each others magic and minds, it's hard to keep clear, who's what and what is exactly going on.
Over all I enjoyed the book but it was frustrating at times when I'd be like wait I thought they already had sex? Oh okay, that didn't really happen. There is a lot that goes on and keeping track of it can be a little hard at times, especially when it comes to the magic and the progress of time. The whole book seems to have taken place in 3 days, but if you go to the beginning it mentions that they were supposed to have a big meeting of the fiends in 7 days. I might have missed something in there that made time go by, but with the level of injury that Carson goes through it feels nearly impossible for her to fully heal and no one sleeps.
Don't get me wrong, there is a sentence that says that once she bound herself to a fiend that she didn't need as much sleep and seemed to heal quickly, but still it seemed to not quite fit right to to me.
With this novel being Carolyn's debut, I'm interested to see how the other books in the series have evolved along with her writing. With all the nonstop action and the world already established, I'm willing to pick up the second book and see if it smooths things out a bit more.
Out of all the genres that are out there I find that Paranormal and Urban Fantasy to be the hardest to create a world. Especially when it comes to developing rules to the world so that not everything is possible. There needs to be limitations and Carolyn Jewel has done that. The only things that really bugged me was the need to smooth out a few of the magic elements when the characters are in each others heads and what the fiends actually look like when not in there human forms. Other than that I really enjoyed the action and the breaking of the total norm in a the San Francisco I live in.
Make sure to check out Carolyn Jewel at her website at www.carolynjewel.com and her other books both paranormal and historical.
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